A3-0212/94

Resolution on the Green Paper submitted by the Commission on access of consumers to justice and the settlement of consumer disputes in the Single Market

The European Parliament,

-having regard to the Treaties amended by the TEU, in particular Article 6 of the EC Treaty,

-having regard to its resolution of 13 March 1987 on consumer redress,

-having regard to the Brussels Convention, signed on 27 September 1968, on jurisdiction and the enforcement of judgements in civil and commercial matters,

-having regard to the Rome Convention, signed on 19 June 1980, on the law applicable to contractual obligations,

-having regard to Directive 84/450/EEC of 10 September 1984 on the approximation of the laws, regulations and administrative provisions of the Member States concerning misleading advertising,

-having regard to Directive 92/13/EEC of 25 February 1992 coordinating the laws, regulations and administrative provisions relating to the application of Community rules on the procurement procedures of entities operating in the water, energy, transport and telecommunications sectors,

-having regard to Directive 93/13/EEC of 5 April 1993 on unfair terms in consumer contracts,

-having regard to the Green Paper submitted by the Commission (COM(93)0576 - C3-0493/93),

-having regard to the report of the Committee on Legal Affairs and Citizens' Rights and the opinion of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Consumer Protection (A3-0212/94),

A.whereas the functioning of the internal market implies, for Community consumers, the freedom to make purchases in other Member States and, for firms established in this market, the right to attract customers in other countries, in a context of healthy competition,

B.whereas, however, the exercise of these freedoms and rights on the part of consumers and firms in the internal market gives rise to a considerable number of transfrontier disputes,

C.whereas these transfrontier disputes create a large number of problems for the consumer, since one of the parties in a dispute is domiciled in another Member State,

D.whereas legal difficulties, such as deciding which law is applicable to the subject of the dispute and to the proceedings, the carrying out of investigations abroad, the costs of representation and defence, which are sometimes out of all proportion to the subject of the dispute, and the subsequent execution of the sentence all help to discourage the consumer from asserting his rights,

E.whereas it is absolutely essential that procedures should be introduced which enable European citizens to seek a settlement of minor consumer disputes covered by both national or Community law,

F.considering that the most pressing problem as regards legal disputes involving consumers in the single market is that of claims by individuals in respect of defects liability guarantees,

1.Calls on the Commission to take into consideration the general observations contained in this resolution;

2.Expresses its concern at the fact that in practice such transfrontier disputes create new obstacles to the freedom of movement of goods and services, which is the very opposite of the aim of the internal market;

3.Notes that in some Member States individual consumer disputes have been made easier by means of simplified procedures for small claims, characterized by short time-limits, optional recourse to the services of a lawyer and general flexibility of formalities;

4.Approves of the out-of-court procedures and bodies other than courts existing in the Member States designed to reach a decision by means of arbitration or an amicable settlement, although it notes national differences in the legal validity of such negotiated settlements;

5.Points out that, although amicable settlements of minor consumer disputes must be encouraged, a right can effectively be guaranteed only by the courts; when all amicable procedures have failed, parties must be able to seek legal redress at a cost commensurate with the small sums involved;

6.Recognizes the value of existing international instruments in this sphere, including the Brussels and Rome Conventions, although it notes that these instruments do not solve all the problems involved in individual consumer disputes, in particular the slowness of proceedings;

7.Recalls that Article 6 of the EC Treaty, as amended by the TEU, sanctions the principle of prohibiting discrimination on the grounds of nationality, which means access to justice must be guaranteed for all Community consumers on equal terms;

8.Considers that the scope and scale of the problem of equal access to justice for Community citizens justify Community action and believes that the desired objectives cannot be adequately achieved by the Member States;

9.Considers therefore that it would be appropriate to harmonize to a certain extent the rules governing legal proceedings in the Member States, in order to establish a Community procedure, for claims up to a certain amount, for the rapid settlement of individual transfrontier consumer disputes in the internal market and points out that certain Community directives currently in force already harmonize to a certain extent the rules on legal proceedings in the Member States;

10.Welcomes the general principles contained in the Commission's Green Paper regarding access to justice for consumers and the settlement of consumer disputes in the Single Market;

11.Shares the Commission's concern that a Community solution should be found to the problems raised by unlawful commercial practices, by means of actions of collective interest, since such practices affect both consumers and firms;

12.Notes that although these unlawful practices originate in one Member State, they may affect consumers in another Member State.

13.Considers that, although the Brussels Convention and the Rome Convention offer a number of provisions which are very favourable for the consumer, they do not fully and satisfactorily solve all the problems involved in consumer disputes, and for this reason it would be appropriate to harmonize the conditions for bringing injunctions against unlawful commercial practices;

14.Considers that this harmonization should be accompanied by the mutual recognition, between Member States, of the right of organizations of firms and consumer organizations to bring legal proceedings recognized by the law of the Member States;

15.Considers, furthermore, that lawyers, judges and magistrates should be given more training in Community law and consumer law and therefore calls on the Member States and the Commission to promote the creation of specialized national and European law faculties;

16.Believes that it is also important to provide the consumer with information about his rights and the most effective way of instituting transfrontier proceedings;

17.Calls on the Commission to consider the possibility of proposing measures for the establishment of a European Union arbitration board to settle transfrontier legal disputes;

18.Calls for the establishment of a network of regional bodies, including transfrontier bodies, which should be as accessible as possible to the public and which should comprise independent, competent and responsible professional lawyers, along the lines of the network already set up by lawyers in certain countries; the form and operating methods of these bodies should be determined in consultation with consumer organizations and they should be bound by a charter of quality;

19.Calls on the Member States to make the conditions for obtaining free legal aid in respect of consumer disputes as flexible as possible and to encourage the creation of legal aid centres and bodies for this type of proceedings;

20.Calls on the Commission to continue launching pilot projects to promote transfrontier cooperation between consumer organizations;

21.Calls on the Commission also to use to the full the opportunities offered by Article K of the TEU concerning cooperation in the field of justice in the European Union;

22.Calls on the Commission also to adopt a recommendation aimed at improving the operation of national bodies other than courts - whether public or private - competent to deal with consumer disputes and to encourage the mutual recognition of their decisions;

23.Calls on the Commission to draw up an interim report with a timetable for implementing the necessary measures.

24.Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission and, for information, to the Council.